Naruto Gakuen: OneShots
by olehoncho
Summary: One-Shots featuring my personal favorite pairs in a Konoha Gakuen style setting. Usual pairs and some crack. JuuKar,NejiTen,KakaMei,ShinoHana,KibaKarui,IrukaAnko,SaiIno,GaiShizune, GaaMatsu,NagatoKonan,KonoHanabi,ShikaTema,SasuSaku,NaruHina   1 shh
1. Chapter List

Naruto Gakuen One-Shots Table of Contents

Chapter List

1. Juugo x Karin (Students at Konoha, 3rd year and 1st year)

2. Neji x Tenten (Students at Konoha, both 2nd year)

3. Kakashi x Mei (Mizukage) (English/Chemistry/1st year Teacher at Konoha x Principal of Kiri Gakuen)

4. Shino x Hana (1st year student at Konoha x School Nurse)

5. Kiba x Karui (1st year at Konoha x student at Kumo Gakuen)

6. Iruka x Anko (2nd year Mathmetics Teacher x Swimming Instructor)

7. Sai x Ino (Students at Konoha, 2nd year and 1st year)

8. Gai x Shizune (Konoha Gym Teacher x Konoha Vice Principal)

9. Gaara x Matsuri (Students at Suna, 1st year and 2nd year... yes Matsuri is older)

10. Nagato x Konan (Headmaster of the Ame Academy x his Assistant)

11. Konohamaru x Hanabi (1st year student at Konoha's Junior High Campus x Early accepted student)

12. Shikamaru x Temari (Student Teacher at Konoha x 3rd year student at Suna)

13. Sasuke x Sakura (Students at Konoha, both 1st year)

14. Naruto x Hinata (Students at Konoha, both 1st year)

*Characters are ~Shippuden Age (16 for the most part).


	2. Juugo x Karin

1. JuugoKarin

Waiting with a good view may be nicer than not, but it's still waiting. Karin tried to suppress her annoyance at her friends, whom she would usually walk home with. Suigetsu and Sasuke had left school early that day, without telling her, and Juugo hadn't arrived at their usual place by the stairway leading down to town. Looking down all she saw were the shadows of the last students leaving campus.

"Argh, leaving school even after the student council. This is humiliating."

She turned her attention back to the scenery, the late afternoon sky over the city. It was early autumn and the colors in the sky seemed to mirror the same tones of yellow and red forming on the leaves of the trees. She let herself take in the scene, but she couldn't help her growing concern at the look of the rain clouds coming in. If she left now she knew she'd likely get caught in the rain without an umbrella. She silently cursed her luck.

The school's chime caught her attention. Turning back she noticed it was now four o'clock. There was no way Juugo should have been this late. Letting out a frustrated exhalation she walked back to the school, knowing that Juugo had brought his umbrella today. As she approached the doors she noticed that it seemed oddly loud still.

"That's strange, there shouldn't be that many people still here to make this much noise."

Opening the door she saw Hana, the school nurse, and Tsunade, the Principal, running past her in the halls. She strained her ears to hear their conversation.

"…knocked out three students before laying out Kakashi Sensei as well. Had to lock him in a coat room to try to calm him…"

Karin knew the only coat room on that side of campus was on the second floor. She hesitantly walked to the room, her instinct confirming what her mind suspected. The reinforced glass window of the coat room was smashed, and the door seemed to have more than one dent recently put in it. She tentatively peeked in through the window and saw Juugo hunched in the corner. By the sound of it he was weeping.

"Juugo?" she asked tentatively.

He looked up at the window before slowly rising. He walked the three steps over to Karin with a limp before looking out at her.

"Hey Karin, sorry if I made you wait." his voice sounded cold, disconnected.

"What happened Juugo?" Karin said motioning with her arms, not realizing he couldn't see behind the door.

"I got in a fight, knocked out three students before Kakashi Sensei tried to break it up. Knocked him out too."

"You idiot, I'm taking your umbrella and going home."

How many times had she warned him about his temper. Sure Sasuke and Suigetsu had their fair share of fights, but at least they kept cool heads. Going down to the shoe racks she grabbed Juugo's umbrella and prepared to go out into the rain that was just starting. She heard voices come her direction again, this time it was Tsunade and Kakashi. She hid behind the shoe racks to not be seen.

"…delinquents, I can understand why he acted that way." Kakashi's voice came into focus.

"He should have come to the school's staff rather than deal with it himself."

"But how does it help to lock him up when he isn't the one at fault?"

"I told Hana to let him out and check him for any wounds before sending him home. We have enough to worry about tonight without having to scold him. First thing in the morning I want to see him and you in my office."

"Great, that means Guy is going to have to take over my…"

Karin waited by the exit until she heard Juugo's footsteps come her way. His limp slowed him down but his steps were still strong. She saw him sit down to put on his shoes, when he finally looked up their eyes met. They each tried to hide their shock.

"I thought you said you were leaving." He said, half questioning.

"Overheard Kakashi Sensei talk to Tsunade. What really happened?"

"A group of delinquents were marking a classroom, a disciplinary council member told me to keep an eye on them while he got a teacher. While I was watching them I saw one of them start throwing rocks out the window into a tree, when I saw that his aim was a bird's nest I…" his voice started breaking up.

Karin walked over and sat down next to Juugo. She parted the hair on the left side of his face to see where he had a fresh bandage applied.

"You hit Kakashi on accident, didn't you?"

"He grabbed me from behind and my elbow hit him in the jaw."

She put her hand on Juugo's knee in a friendly manner. She adjusted her glasses as she looked at him, trying to mentally justify herself in giving advice to someone her senior.

"Juugo, your birthday is in two weeks. You're going to be eighteen soon and you need to learn to control your anger better. Some things are out of your control, it's hard but you need to accept that. You need to have a cool head like Sasuke..."

"You like Sasuke, don't you?"

Juugo's matter-of-fact question threw Karin for a loop, and she found herself cough.

"That's… but… I… that's not the point Juugo. You need to learn some self-restraint."

"Alright Karin, thank you." He stood up slowly and took the umbrella from her hand, as he did his hand brushed against hers. "Let's go before the rain gets worse."

As they walked down the stairs into the city Karin tried not to concentrate on how warm it was under that umbrella next to him, on how warm her hand still felt.. Making their way toward her house Karin could not help but remember when she first met Juugo. Two years her senior, he was large and quiet. His presence alone had prevented more than one fight from breaking out at school and in the city. He had a scary and violent side, but it only came out in moments of righteous anger. There was something calming about him, it was comforting.

They finally stopped in front of her house, from the lights on Karin knew at least her mother was home by now, her step-father would still be at the library for another hour or so. Juugo looked down at her and again at the house. Karin positioned herself in front of Juugo and stared him in the eye.

"Maybe I was a little hard on you. You have a good heart, but you need to learn a little restraint."

She reached her hand to the back of his neck and pulled down gently. Tilting his head she kissed him on his cheek before running inside. Turning as she closed the door she caught a glimpse of him standing dumb-struck with his hand on his cheek. Opening the door again she yelled out reminding him to go home. Watching him turn and walk away, Karin laughed to herself seeing him grin childishly. His hand still on the cheek where she had kissed him.

Finally closing the door behind her, Karin slowly sank to the floor not caring that it was cold and wet from her shoes. It felt unseasonably warm from where she was sitting.


	3. Neji x Tenten

The doors to the airport opened and Neji immediately felt lost in the crowd. His uncle had dropped him off while on his way to a business meeting, it was the only reason Neji had been able to come today. Neji tried his best to work his way through the sea of people and luggage bags but nearly tripped more than once.

'How can so many people, walking in different directions, ever mange to get where they're going so fast?' he wondered to himself.

A large man bumped into him, crumpling the package Neji carried in his hands. Before Neji could even raise a complaint, the man was gone from his view. Fighting against the mob, Neji sought a seat in a quiet terminal corner he saw. Finally sitting down, he opened the parcel and found it to be unharmed. Breathing a sigh of relief, Neji checked his watch.

"10:30, her plane should arrive in another half hour."

Looking through an open window, Neji saw the planes land and take off. Even from his seat he could feel the vibrations of the jet engines as they powered up and took to the skies.

Carefully handling his package he walked over to the map and found the terminal where Tenten's plane would be landing. Knowing it was back through the mass of people, Neji looked for a back way through. Finally satisfied with the stairwells as his route, he hoped he would beat the crowd.

When he finally arrived at terminal eighteen he was surprised at the preparations that had been made. Decorations, balloons, flags, people carrying home-made signs, flower arrangements, and a full compliment of the nation's press had gathered. A table with a line of microphones had been set up in front of the television cameras. Neji looked at his package and felt minimal in comparison.

He stood in a corner in the back of the room and waited with everyone else…

* * *

"Remember what we talked about. There are going to be a lot of flash photographers, do try hard not to shield your eyes." The head coach said, "Just smile and take your seats at the conference table. Medal winners sitting down, team mates standing behind."

Tenten had heard the speech countless time by now, perhaps more often than hearing the woman give gymnastic advice. That thought gave her reason to smile as she prepared to step out of the plane and onto the boarding ramp leading to the terminal.

"Tenten!" the woman shouted from the front of the plane, "For the last time, you're supposed to wear your medal on the outside of your jacket."

"Yes." Tenten said with as much humility as she could muster.

Walking up the ramp Tenten remembered her performance at the Olympics. The crowds, the lights, the spectacle of it all. Her father had been too busy to come, but the presence of her mother had helped Tenten significantly. She wondered why she felt so odd, winning was supposed to be something you should celebrate.

Sitting down in front of the cameras Tenten felt numb to it all. She politely smiled and nodded at the compliments and praise her coach had for her. Her team mates expressed their pride in their achievements. Scanning the crowd Tenten saw that once again that her father had not made it. A familiar shape in the back of the crowd caught her attention for a moment before being lost between reporters crowding into each other.

A light came on the table in front of her indicating that it was her turn to speak. She put her brave face on and looked at the camera.

"It was my honor to represent out country at the Olympics. I owe a great deal to everyone who helped me, my coach, my choreographer, my parents…"

She remembered the lines that had been written for her, thanking the sponsors and what not, but it all felt so wrong. This was not what was in her heart.

"The only reason I'm here today is because of a very special friend of mine. He was really the one who put in late hours helping me practice, who encouraged me, helped me stick to my training and diet plan, and also helped me break it at times. Seeing his smile while I was practicing meant more to me than all the words of 'encouragement' my coach ever gave me."

Seeing the light in front of her turn off, Tenten knew her microphone had been cut. She smiled gently as her coach began speaking again. Bowing her head, she said into the powerless microphone, "Thank you Neji."

Vaulting onto the table, Tenten ran a few feet on top of it before somersaulting over the heads of the reporters and into a clear area of the terminal. She ran as fast as she could, trying to hold back her tears.

* * *

Reporters seemed to break away from the conference in all directions, but Neji knew they wouldn't find her. He would have laughed, but he knew somewhere Tenten would be crying. Taking the same back stairs that had taken him to the terminal, Neji navigated his way through the quiet corners of the airport. Going away from the cameras, Neji found a closed down section of the station and found Tenten crouched behind a stall.

Placing his package under his arm Neji pulled out a pocket handkerchief and handed it to Tenten as he took a position in front of her. She looked up in disbelief as she took the handkerchief, seemingly, without even thinking.

"Neji!" she said in surprise, "How did… what are you doing here?"

"I know it's a little out of the way, but I ditched school and convinced Uncle to give me a ride here."

"Then you…" her sentence faded but Neji knew what she asked.

"Yes. I'm sorry Tenten."

"Sorry? For what?"

"Sorry for putting you through all this. The pressure, the national exposure. I was just encouraging a friend to do what she wanted." Neji said as he took a seat next to her.

Tenten fingered the gold medal hanging from her neck and looked sad.

"I loved the competition, the friendships I made. It's all the fake people and hype I can't stand." Having finally calmed down, Tenten's eyes moved to the package Neji had set down on the ground. "What's that?"

"It's my present to you."

Lifting the crumpled package, Neji handed it to her. Pulling the string and opening the lid revealed the single rose wrapped in florist paper.

"I know it's not much but…"

Tenten closed the lid on the box and took Neji's hand in hers. She smiled as she looked at him.

"Thank you Neji."

They sat sharing stories of the friends she had met at the Olympics and the response the school and town had over her. When things finally quieted down they left the airport to get a ride home with Neji's Uncle Hiashi.

* * *

Over the weeks to come Neji would pick up Tenten to go to their study sessions. Before leaving her room she would glance over to the corner of her room. There she had organized a small table with her Olympic memorabilia on it, lying on top of her Gold medal was a single dried rose.


	4. Kakashi x Mei

"…you don't have a problem with that do you Kakashi?" Only the end part of Tsunade's question caught Kakashi's attention. The staff meeting had gone long and Kakashi had long stopped paying attention.

"Wait, what?" Kakashi asked oblivious to the fact that everyone was staring at him.

"Between the sports event and the school trip you'll be the only staff member available to escort visiting Principal Terumi around campus when she arrives tomorrow afternoon."

"Sure, fine." Kakashi replied without thinking.

When the meeting adjourned Kakashi stayed in his seat and began rereading the most recent of the Icha-Icha series. With only a few chapters left to read his anticipation for the sequel's release tomorrow loomed all the more present in his thoughts.

"Ah, tomorrow. That's when I have to…"

Nearly falling out of his chair he looked around the room but was disappointed to see all other members of the staff had left. He couldn't escort the visiting Principal, he had to get a copy of the new book. For a moment he entertained the idea of appealing to Principal Tsunade about getting out of his duty, but he decided it best not to provoke her temper.

"Last time she got angry, we had to replace the entire Chem Lab." He mused aloud. "No, I guess I'll have to wait until after showing off the lab to get the book."

Locking the campus up was all part of the same old routine to Kakashi, the long trip home, the lonely house, the light bulbs that needed replacing, the creaky floor boards, and the ripped tatami. He marked another day off the calendar and sighed as he looked at the circled date indicating the release of the next book in the series. Sadly, it was the only date of importance marked on the calendar.

After lighting the candles in the room, Kakashi turned off the electric lights and knelt in front of his family's Butsudan. Opening the cabinet he gently picked up the portrait of his deceased parents. His mother, who died when he was young, and his father, who had taken his life not many years later. Though he had lived with relatives after that, he had never found that same spark between two people that he had seen his parents have for each other.

"Thirty years of life, and this is what I produce?" Kakashi said looking at his house in the dim light, turning back to his parent's portrait, "I wonder, would you be proud of me?"

Closing the family shrine Kakashi blew out each candle in turn save one before lying down on his futon. He stared into the last flame as the answer to his question came to him.

"No." And with his next breath Kakashi blew out the final candle.

The next day seemed a long drone to Kakashi. A humming sound as the train took him to school, the penetrating ringing of school bells, the annoying boasts of his colleague Guy, and the din of the class on break. When the school day finally ended Kakashi was actually looking forward to acting as the visiting Principal's escort. A chance to walk the halls of the school when things were actually quiet.

He waited by the school's main gate for her car to arrive. From what he had heard Kiri High School was one of the top in the district. Other teachers would probably see it as a rival school, but Kakashi paid little attention to such things. More than once Tsunade had tried to scold him for his indifference. The combination of his class' higher average scores and his position as teacher union rep made him no easy target for reproach in having little awareness of competition.

A very humble, economy line car pulled into the parking lot. As Principal Terumi exited her vehicle Kakashi's first thought was to wonder how she fit her tall frame into so compact an automobile. This line of thinking was quickly abandoned as his focus turned to her features. Long red hair, full lips, well-proportioned, she was like something out of all of the books he had read.

As she approached Kakashi put on his work face and prepared to be as polite as possible.

"Principal Terumi, welcome to Konoha Gakuen, I'm…"

"Hatake Kakashi, first year English instructor and chair of the Chemistry department. You're just the man I wanted to see." Her speech was elegant, but very professional.

"What brings you here today?"

"I'm here to inspect your campus' new chemistry wing. The firm who built yours put forward a good bid and I'm here to see the results of their work first hand."

"Right this way then." Kakashi gestured to the entrance that would lead them to the new wing. Things made more sense now than yesterday when he had been given this assignment, of course it was because it was his department.

They walked in silence through the halls, Kakashi tried stealing another glance at her but she noticed almost immediately. He directed his eyes forward again as he motioned the correct turn for them to take. A distant sound broke Kakashi's attention, and the silence between the two.

"Sounds like your team scored against us." Terumi said questioningly.

"How can you be certain it's not your team?" Kakashi responded, he didn't realize that the game today was against Kiri.

"You sure don't know much about other schools do you?" She asked her question in a tone that seemed to imply that she didn't want an answer. "Kiri has a special cheer for every goal, save, or play we do. Helps bond the students together."

Arriving at the Chem Lab Kakashi fumbled with his keys and unlocked the door. Letting her inside first he closed the door behind them and turned on the lights. The lab was still pristine, even after two years. He opened the back room, allowing her to examine the system that regulated the gas pumps and the plumbing. She systematically explored every corner of the lab until satisfied. After twenty minutes they walked back to the door to find Kakashi had accidentally locked them in.

"Ah, yeah. I forgot I keep the key to the lab door on my other set of keys." Kakashi's blunt statement of fact doubled as his apology.

Taking seats near the window, they occasionally waved at anyone who came by, those passersby where far and few between though. Sitting against the wall was boring, Kakashi reached to his pocket only to remember he had left the completed book at home. He put his head in his hands and let out a deep sigh.

"Funny isn't it?" Terumi eventually broke the silence, "I mean our situation."

"I suppose." Kakashi weakly replied, "When you contract the firm you're going to have to do something about these doors."

It took a few moments but their nervous chuckles eventually broke out into genuine laughter. As she parted her hair back from her face, Kakashi noticed her beautiful smile. They passed the time talking about her work at Kiri. Mei, she insisted after a while that Kakashi call her by name, had actually gone to school at Kiri when she was younger. Back then the campus had been on the slow path downward. After graduating from College she had made it her goal to become Principal of her cherished High School. Five years ago she accomplished her dream and in that time she took a school many regarded as a campus for delinquents and roughnecks and turned it into rival of Konoha's in both scholastic and athletic achievements.

"We still have a long way to go, but I'm hopeful."

The night janitor eventually found them and let them out. Kakashi escorted her to her car where she offered to take them out to dinner. Though torn, he declined. As he walked the streets of town he wondered why he had not taken her offer. Eventually his path brought him to the city's bookstore. On the shelf was one final copy of the new Icha-Icha novel. Reaching for it his hand bumped against a graceful but strong hand. The face he turned to meet was a familiar one.

"Mei?" Kakashi stood perplexed, seeing the Principal he had spent the afternoon locked in a Chemistry Lab was reaching for the same book as himself.

In a flash she grabbed the book and ran around a book display. Before Kakashi could think she was at the checkout line and walking out the door. He debated running after her for a moment, but every bit of reason in him thought such an action to be ridiculous. Before his reason could respond, Kakashi found that running after her was just what he was doing.

She was a lone figure, facing her car in the empty parking lot. As Kakashi slowly approached her he thought it odd that she was shaking. When he got close he saw that she was struggling with her keys, trying to open her door. She wasn't startled when Kakashi put his hands on hers. Her face was still flush with embarrassment.

The connection of their hands, and the look in her eyes seemed to tell her entire life's story to Kakashi. A woman dedicated to her work, never any time for a relationship, involved on one level withdrawn in another. In many ways, her life was the same as his. When she finally stopped shaking Kakashi placed a hand on her shoulder.

"How about that dinner you asked me out to?" Kakashi asked in a low voice.

"Can you drive, I'm not certain I'm calm enough yet." She said as she wiped her tears.

Kakashi took her keys and opened the door for her. He turned on the engine and drove to the quiet restaurant he knew would still be open at this hour. For the rest of the evening, neither one of them gave another thought to the book, still in its sale's bag, they had left where it had dropped on the ground of the parking lot.


	5. Shino x Hana

Upon reaching the Inuzuka residence Shino debated whether he should adjust his heavy backpack as the weight was beginning to cut into his shoulders or if he should remove it and carry it in his hands. Realizing that having it in his hands would make if harder to knock on the door, Shino moved the straps until it laid comfortably on his back. As he knocked on the door he realized that he could have just as easily rung the doorbell instead.

'Life is all about the little details and decisions' he reflected.

Inside Shino heard the voices of Kiba's older sister and mother yelling at each other. Their voices easily drowned out the sound of Shino's subtle knock. Before he could knock again the garage door opened and a hot rod mini drove away with Kiba's mother Tsume behind the wheel. She revved the engine before driving away in a fury, her hot glare shot in Shino's direction.

As the rich smell of exhaust faded Shino turned to notice Hana standing behind him, still staring in the direction her mother had driven off in. Amidst the noise of the car, he hadn't heard her open the door and come outside.

"Uh, excuse me Hana," Shino began in a dull tone, "is Kiba home?"

After a few seconds Shino realized that Hana had not heard him. Turning towards her, Shino noted a fiercely determined look on her face; she was fighting back tears.

"Hana, are you alright?"

She snapped upright as she faced Shino, as though she received a surprise. Taking a step backwards to the door, Hana adjusted her bangs on either side of her face then said,

"Shino, hello. Can I help you?"

"Yeah, Kiba told me to come over after school to help him study for the exams. Can I come in?"

"Sure, go right on up to his room."

Opening the door wider, she motioned for him to enter and take off his shoes before going upstairs. Shino hung up his coat and started for the stairway. His eyes flashed to the living room, but he avoided lingering his vision on the broken houseplants and new cracks in the walls. He had spent his fair share of time at the Inuzuka's, and property damage was no new thing; but always had each fight ended in raucous laughter, never cold silence.

Passing Hana's bedroom Shino got the impression that the most recent struggle began there. A newly shattered mirror, shredded dresses, and torn paper mingled on the floor.

'This doesn't feel right.' Shino thought to himself as he felt his gall rose.

When he got to Kiba's room he found his friend was not there, nor was the room set up for study. Figuring that Kiba must be somewhere, Shino set up the folding table kept in the closet before laying out the study manuals on top. When he was finished he heard footsteps come up the stairs and stop by the door.

"Sorry Shino, I forgot to tell you. Kiba had to run out to drop something off at practice, he said he'd be back soon." She turned her head when the sound of a crash came from her room, "Help yourself to anything in the kitchen, I need to clean up."

As she ran to her room, Shino paused for a moment. He walked downstairs to grab a few things from the kitchen before walking up to Hana's room. She had divided her clothes into different piles and had a broom in hand ready to sweep up the mirror shards.

"Before you do that," Shino interrupted as he held out a box of baking soda, "spread some of this out on the floor first. It'll keep the glass from sticking to the broom."

She nodded before complying.

"If you don't mind, can I help you clean while I wait for Kiba to come home?"

Again she nodded, a sad smile on her face.

Shino focused on cleaning up the floor as Hana began putting dresses that had mirror shards on them in the trash. Oddly she seemed to become increasingly satisfied with each one she added to the refuse. Shino held in a laugh as he remembered all the times he had been over when Hana was leaving on a date, never once was she pleased with having to wear a dress, and she often took them off at first opportunity when she came home. A couple of those times had been in the living room, Shino suppressed a blush remembering seeing one of those times.

Hana was the nurse at his high school, as far as Shino was concerned she was a marvel. Graduated early from school, got a medical degree in half the time as anyone else, but turned down better offers to work at her High School simply because Principal Tsunade asked her. In all that though, she was still his best friend's older sister. He had spent a lot of time in this house, and she was always just a room or two away.

When they finished in her room they went downstairs, it was five o'clock and Kiba still hadn't come home. When the phone rang Hana answered it,

"What's that? Had to stay? You do remember you asked… Alright, I'll tell him." After hanging up the phone Hana sat down on the couch and looked up at Shino. "That bum says that his coach hooked him into joining the practice for their big game against Kumo this weekend. He won't be home until seven. You can go home now if you want."

"My father told me to never leave a job half done. I'll go when we're done." Shino replied frankly.

"Great, in that case, finish up down here. I need to take a shower."

Shino supposed that was true enough, he realized that nearly half the soil from the potted plant was on her dress. She went upstairs to take a shower as Shino threw out the plant and broken pottery, swept up the dirt, and cleaned the furniture. At the end he looked over this thorough work and felt a small surge of pride. Hana came downstairs when she finished and stood by Shino.

"It's cleaner than it was this morning." Hana said with a honest smile. "Thanks a lot for your help. Can I make you something for dinner? We've got the stuff for a wild grass salad."

Feeling a bit of shock at hearing his favorite food, Shino smiled and said,

"That sounds fine."

When she was finished and finally sat down at the table, Shino found himself unable to divert his eyes from her. Her hair was not entirely dry from her shower, it had wet her shirt and apron, which clung to her chest. He coughed and turned his head downward to the plate to avoid being a lecher.

"You're a cute kid Shino." Hana reached her hand across the table and mussed his hair.

As they ate Hana talked about what had happened that afternoon. Tsume had come home with a booklet she got from a matchmaker. After a series of bad boyfriends, Hana flatly refused to meet with anymore of the flunkies her mother picked out for her. The refusal had turned into an argument about Hana's lack of drive in finding a boyfriend, leading to a fight, which led to Tsume's storming out.

"I think one of the reasons I admire you is because you always followed your own path. You've always lived life at your own pace and by your own rules. If you don't feel right about dating now, then don't." Shino thought it odd he felt so confident as he was talking, usually he felt so awkward when speaking to others.

She got up from her seat as she took the plates from the table. Turning back to Shino she quietly said,

"You're a good kid Shino. Thank you."

"Will I ever be anything more than just that?" Shino felt his throat clamp shut after the words left his lips. Swallowing hard, he wasn't sure where the utterance had come from.

Hana began washing the dishes as Shino went upstairs to gather his books. When he was finished he turned to find Hana standing in the hallway again. As he got up to leave, Hana stopped him before placing a gentle kiss on his forehead

"Maybe in a few years Shino." There was a spring in her step as she went to her room. She turned, winked with a smile and said, "Maybe."


	6. Kiba x Karui

'I'll be waiting for you by the north entrance thirty minutes after the game - Karui.'

Kiba had gotten notes in his locker before, especially after big games, but this one was different. He let out a sad laugh at all the notes he had just torn up, covered in hearts and written with all sorts of flowery love nonsense. This latest note was rather plain in comparison,

"So what's different about it?" He asked himself.

By now all his team mates had packed up and left on the school bus back to town. Winning a game at a rival school, being the star player, and staying afterwards were all red flags that shot up in Kiba's mind. Perhaps the shadow of danger was one reason he decided to see what the note was about. Strangely, the instincts he always trusted told him not to be worried.

There were still several people out on the field, Kiba saw the familiar workings of the cleaning up that has to happen after big games. The north entrance had one spotlight on, and by the look of it cleaning had already finished here. The timer/clock on the scoreboard was still on, showing only twenty-five minutes had gone by. Taking a leaning position against the gate wall, Kiba waited.

Kiba imagined how the scenario would play out. He'd been confessed to a few times, nowhere near as often as the campus pretty-boy Sasuke; but enough to know how to act properly, such knowledge stemming from the admonitions of his older sister and the threatening of his mother.

"Let them down easy." The words came almost naturally to Kiba.

"So you come to this already planning to reject me?" Kiba fought to keep his balance against the wall when he noticed the girl standing in front of him. Past her head he saw the time was indeed now thirty minutes after the game. "I'm not sure how I should take that."

The students at Kumo Gakuen have a reputation as a wild bunch, though you couldn't tell from the soccer team they field. But the girl standing in front of him seemed to have more spirit than the entirety of the team he had played against earlier that evening. Fiery hair framed a dark face set with amber eyes, Kiba momentarily mused that she looked like a tree on fire.

Straightening out Kiba decided to play this naturally; after all, he was still unsure what she wanted to talk with him about.

"I had no plan to do anything like that." He said as coolly as possible. Giving her another look over, she carried herself very well. She had a good figure and a very confident stance, overall she came off as bold but not overbearing. "Karui right?" She nodded, "I'm all ears, what did you want to tell me?"

Taking a deep breath she looked Kiba straight in the eyes and said,

"You also play on your school's tennis team?"

"Yeah, I'm no star tennis player though."

"I'd like to challenge you to a game this Saturday."

'She's challenging me to a game of tennis after I single-handedly beat her school's football team?' Kiba thought about that a few times until it actually started making less sense. Quickly thinking of what his schedule was like on Saturday provided Kiba no good alternatives so he decided to agree, "Alright, this Saturday. Where'd you want to meet up?"

"Can we meet here again at 2:30?"

"2:30 then."

As she turned to leave Kiba couldn't tell whether the smile on her face was one of satisfaction of mischievousness. Still, the short encounter was not exactly what Kiba had expected it would be.

That weekend Kiba should have known better than to rely on his mother for a ride; Tsume rarely shared her travel plans with anyone and even rarer did she share the seats of her hotrod Kuromaru. Kiba was left with public transportation to make the trip out to Kumo's campus.

His presence on the campus was not unnoticed, Kiba noted more than one angry glare shot his direction. Thankfully Kumo's bad reputation came from what the students did away from school, as Principal É ran an even tighter ship than Tsunade. Arriving at the north gate, Kiba once again found that he had come early. The field was busy, it looked like the track team was setting up for relay running. On the far side of the field, Kiba saw Karui standing in an anchor position.

'Was Karui planning on playing me right after her practice?' Kiba's thoughts drifted, 'Why did she ask me out to play a game with her anyways? … And why is she running with her long hair free? Long hair like that must cause a lot of drag.'

With a shot the race begun, Kumo had enough girl runners to make four teams. Unlike certain schools he had seen which would field training teams just to give the best runners competition in training, each team was running a well-balanced race. When the runners finally reached the final leg of the run, the four anchor runners all looked like race cars revving in neutral.

Karui matched her pace to the third runner to accept the baton. Relay races are finely tuned routines, Karui and the other runner knew exactly how many strides they would take, and where their arms would be for the exchange. When the stick was firmly in her grasp Karui accelerated as though someone had set her soles on fire. Where the rest of the race had been competitive, Karui made the other anchor runners look like amateurs. She finished nearly a second and a half ahead of the others.

All the girls did their cool down, except for Kauri who grabbed her bag and walked over towards Kiba. As she finished wiping the sweat from her face with a towel she said,

"Sorry to keep you waiting," then motioning with her towel to the upper outdoors level, she said in a tone half serious half playful, "the tennis courts are up there, you ready to lose?"

"Who do you think you're talking to?" Kiba said as he unzipped his racket from its case with a flourish, "Let's play."

The tennis team was using the majority of the courts, but their practice was winding down for the day. Kiba and Karui set up one of the last courts and started playing. Keeping their own scores only added to the spirited boasting and lively exchange. Kiba returned her serve with his best moon ball and asked, "So, do you often play tennis right after track practice?"

Her volley return sent the ball to the far side of Kiba's ad court. "I love tennis after relay; it's all about coordinating the arms, legs, and managing strength for the big bursts of energy."

Kiba lobbed the ball back again, which gave him time to get back into position. After two sets, Kiba started to get used to the speed of her topspin hits. After winning another set Kiba smiled at himself for figuring out her timing. From across the court Karui was smiling at him as well. She won the next two sets consecutively.

As they finished the game Karui came over to Kiba's side and sat down next to him as they leaned against the fence. The both smelled of sweat and exhaustion; though others don't like the smell Kiba breathed deeply, he had always thought the reason he was so good at sports was because he loved the smell of sweat.

"Do you know why I asked you to come while I was still running the rally?" Karui asked when she regained her breath.

Kiba took a gulp from his sport's drink and shook his head.

"Last night I was impressed with the way you played. You played your best and I could see you were in your element; there's this wild side to you that I found fascinating. I wanted you come early today so you could see me at my best. What did you think?"

"Your school has a good track team, but you really stood out. I thought your hair was going to be a burden, but you looked like the second coming of Flo-Jo out there."

Perhaps it was just Kiba's imagination, but when he mentioned Flo-Jo a light seemed to flash across her eyes. Flo-Jo was apparently her hero and inspiration. They spent the remainder of the afternoon talking about their sports heroes and favorite games.

As the sun set they walked down to the train station, as Kiba had to get home.

"I have to admit I didn't know what to expect when I came out here." Kiba said honestly.

"And?" Karui asked flatly.

"Same time next week?" Kiba asked hesitantly.

"Oh that delivery is no good." Karui in her usual tone, half serious half joking, "Try it again."

The train rolled in and the doors opened. Waiting for the crowd to disperse, Kiba boldly said, "I'll see you next week." He entered the train as the last call was given.

A familiar smile crossed Karui's face as she said, "It's a date."

* * *

Florence Griffith-Joyner "Flo-Jo" was a Women's Olympian runner notable for her long hair.


	7. Iruka x Anko

Timing is everything. Every tenth step Anko blew her whistle to signal the swimmers to change their strokes. She clicked her tongue as she looked at her stopwatch. When they completed their final circuit she gave a long tweet on her whistle signaling the end of practice. Two of her girls had stopped dead in the center of the pool, floating on their backs instead of swimming back.

"If you water lilies don't have the strength to swim back to post, use one of these."

Throwing two life rings into the water made a splash that caused several girls standing poolside to laugh. Already the Club leader was issuing instructions to pack up the lane dividers and clean the area. When cleanup activities were completed the girls lined up in front of Anko for closing remarks.

"I saw some good effort out there, we had a lot of improved times, but we can't slack off if we plan on beating Kiri's team at the regional meet next week. So tomorrow I'll see you all on the track for a five K run before hitting the pool." The collective sighs from her students put a smile on Anko's face. "Dismissed!"

Usually Anko would just leave from there for the day, as taking care of the pool was her morning routine, but she remembered that an important regional announcement was going to be in her inbox that day so she went to the locker room. The majority of her students were in the showers, so Anko's presence went unnoticed. Finding her mail pile, Anko found the twenty or so school letters she hadn't bothered to open before finding the letter she had been waiting for.

'Revision of the schedule, form for compensation of travel costs, last notification of team roster submission… same old, same old.' She thought rifling through the papers. Leaning back in her chair she turned off the light and closed her eyes for a moment to rest as she heard the girls coming out from the showers to change at their lockers. In her seated position she was out of anyone's line of sight. Though mostly uninterested, one conversation caught her ear.

"Gah, I can't stand that Mitarashi. Look at my nose, she hit my nose with that life ring she threw." That was Nekoi, a second year. Always slow in getting out of the water.

"You can't really blame her, you were taking a long time to get out of the pool." That was Ohkawa, Nekoi's rather innocent friend.

"What about those crazy drills of hers? We practice so hard and so late there's barely any time left to have a social life." Igarashi was a top notch swimmer, but a bit of a prima dona.

"That's 'cause the old bitch doesn't have one." Nekoi said cuttingly.

It was the laughter of several other girls in the locker room that set it off. Anko picked up her chair and threw it through the window that separated her office from the locker room. She then kicked the door open and knocked over a trash can. As she locked eyes with Nekoi, she saw the blood drain from her face, which wasn't the only liquid that drained from Nekoi.

Leaving the lockers Anko went back to the pool, and took a seat behind the supply shed. Playing with her stopwatch she turned it on and off every fifty-six seconds exactly. The sun went down and the darkness of evening was just about to set in when the outdoor light towers were turned on. Footsteps came her direction and as she looked up she saw a familiar face.

"Iruka? What are you doing out here?" Anko asked.

"I like to meet with the school janitor Jiraiya everyday before leaving, he's a funny guy. But today he told me a story of how he had to clean up the girl's locker room. He said the floor was covered with glass, and trash, and urine of all things. You wouldn't happen to know about all that, would you?" The way he laid the accusation at her was innocence mingled with awareness.

"I guess I overreacted."

"Anything you can tell an old friend?"

Clicking the stopwatch, Anko looked down to notice that it had stopped on fifty-six point one seconds.

"What am I doing here? Do you have any idea what it's like to be surrounded by girls ten years younger and three seconds faster than I am?" As Anko stood up, Iruka offered the use of his hand. She nodded a thanks to him. "I was in their shoes less than a decade ago, I was competing on the national level, but no matter how hard I tried I was never good enough. I tortured myself to break certain barriers, and now without trying these little pipsqueaks who care more about their stupid boyfriends beat the times I busted my ass over! As time goes by what do I get? My body will bulge and sag, my times will get slower and slower, while I'm in a hell of always being surrounded by girls younger, faster, and better than I am."

Anko raised her arm to throw the stopwatch, but Iruka grabbed her before she could. He walked her over to the edge of the pool where he took of his shoes and put his feet in the water, doing the same Anko looked at the reflection of water on the surface.

"Welcome to the life of a teacher Anko." Iruka said with a gentle smile on his face. "We teach the rising generation. Young minds and bodies who are so open to life it's almost frightening. We don't know whether to be proud or scared of the best of them; we don't know whether to blame them or ourselves for their failures."

"And when they succeed, all the glory goes to them… never us."

"It's the sacrifice we make. We give up a little bit of ourselves to ensure that they make it to the next level."

"But at the end of the day, what are we left with?"

Iruka fiddled with the stopwatch,

"How do you reset this thing?" He asked with a stupid grin on his face.

Resetting the watch for him, she handed it back.

"Would you swim a lap for me?"

"What?"

"I want you to swim for me. Hundred meter freestyle, your event. If you can't beat your time, then I'll make sure you get fired for the stunt you pulled today. I won't stand for you staying in your own personal hell where your past plagues you like this. However, if you beat it… I'll treat you to dango."

By the look on his face, she knew he meant business. Anko got up to do her stretches, then took off her jumpsuit revealing her one-piece swimsuit underneath. Taking position on the diving block she gave a nod to Iruka. He spit as he pulled out his own whistle, when he blew it Anko was greeted with the rush of water. Her muscle memory kicked in full force. Even without the lane buoys she knew she was swimming a straight line in the pool.

All the sensations she missed came back to her, the thrill of competition pumped her heart all the faster. In her younger days she had been compared to an otter in the way she swam, tonight she felt more like a skipping stone across the surface. She barely noticed the turn or even when she touched the end; it had been so long she had forgotten what it was like to be lost in a moment.

Iruka crouched down to the edge of the pool as Anko looked up at him. He handed her the timer, which she threw into the water, she didn't care. Reaching up she grabbed his tied and pulled down sharply. She got out of the pool and looked down at him as he struggled to grab the edge of the pool.

"That was for threatening to have me fired." She yelled down at him. She offered her own hand, and pulled him out of the pool. "That was for offering to get me Dango." She sat him down on the starting block and knelt in front of him as she moved close. "And this is for helping remind me of who I am." Placing her hands on his shoulders she pulled him closer. Their first kiss was gentle, it broke for a moment but when the kiss continued there was a heat to it. Iruka's hands encircled her, pulling her closer. They broke for air and stopped. Anko took a seat on the starting block next to Iruka.

"Anko," Iruka looked straight in her eyes, with that open honest smile, "I just want to let you know… some things get better with age."


	8. Sai x Ino

Sai ran his fingers along the top of the his usual stool in the art room. Years of spilled paints and other art supplies had formed a multicolored, though uneven, layer that was more fun to look at than sit on. Sitting down and leaning back against the wall he propped his feet up on his desk and began a pencil sketch of the room as the other students were entering with the final bell. Halfway though class Sai looked at the sketch and began to critique his own work. By capturing the essence of movement in his fellow students without adding any distinguishing features, the overall affect made it seem as though the room was populated with ghosts.

Turning to the next page, Sai focused his attention on the teacher's sample still-life scene. Everyone else in class was joking as they drew half-heartedly, they were missing all the little details. There were two external light sources, the ambient and the lamp that was focused on the scene. The lamp's light was shining on an open pocket watch which reflected the light on another part of the stage. A flashlight that was turned on gave an interesting contrast of light in the folded cloth.

Getting up from his stool, Sai got a sheet of canvas from the supply closet and put it on an easel. It was not the images that captured his imagination, but the flow of light. The fruits, the objects, the cloth all blended into the same darkness as his brush flew across the canvas. The light was the important part of the still life, the dozens of miniature rainbows in the prism, each beam cutting through the shadows.

"Sai!" Yamato's commanding voice finally broke Sai's concentration. Looking up from the easel Sai noticed that it was 20 minutes after the final school bell.

"I just finished Yamato sensei," turning the easel around Sai presented his work for appraisal, "what do you think?"

Yamato barely looked up from his whittling as he gave a blunt, "Once again Sai you're brilliant."

Sai pinned the canvas to a thread that ran along the ceiling and grabbed his bag to leave when Yamato suddenly appeared right behind him. The man had a habit of sneaking up on students working, which had led to more than one nervous streak scribbled across an artwork. The man's presence was unsettling, but Sai put on his best smile.

"Aren't you forgetting something Sai?"

"I don't believe so Sensei."

"Your final project Sai. You've finished everything else this year, but you still have to get my approval for your final project. Drawing the same thing ten times using different techniques… you remember right?"

Sai held in his frustration remembering all the specifics. He had submitted four final projects already but they all were rejected. As he tried to think of a new subject Yamato moved over to the drying work he had completed earlier and looked at it with new eyes.

"Nobody doubts your talent Sai, but what you need is an expansion of vision. Your style is very rare and refreshing, but you need more experience with other techniques." Yamato touched the wet canvas and touched his chin, leaving a distinct black spot. "Portrait. Find a female classmate and do ten portraits of her."

"What…" Sai began to ask but Yamato was humming in a distracted manner which meant he was not going to respond to anything. Sai walked out of the room making a note in his sketchbook of the final project that had been decided for him.

After leaving school Sai decided to take a different way home hoping for a spark of inspiration to hit him. He passed a café where he would spend lazy Sundays sketching the buildings, the river park that had excellent lighting for sunsets, even the town's farmer's market but nothings jumped out at him.

The sensation of falling and hitting the ground left Sai reeling for a moment as he realized a door had been opened and hit him. A girl was speaking in somewhat frantic tones and offering an apology but she was not yet in focus.

"…I'm sorry Sai, I didn't see you there." The voice was Ino Yamanaka's, a fellow student. She offered a cold compress for his head, which had a welt growing on his forehead.

"I'm fine Ino." Sai finally looked up to notice that Ino was dressed in black and had a bouquet of flowers in arm.

"Okay then, I've got to run, sorry." With that Ino ran off from her parent's flower shop.

Inspiration seemed to strike Sai and he grabbed his bag and followed her. His head was throbbing somewhat and it was hard to run while holding the cold compress. Sai got his beret out of his bag and fixed it so it held the cold pack in place. It wasn't but a few blocks away that Sai found where Ino had gone, the town's cemetery. Following at a good distance Sai noticed Ino kneeling over a gravestone with several other students nearby. After ten minutes or so the two students, whom Sai noted as Chouji and Shikamaru left while Ino remained behind.

Sai grabbed his sketchbook and a charcoal pencil and was about to sketch the scene when he saw the note he had written himself about the final project. He slowly approached Ino who seemed lost in her thoughts.

"Do you mind if I sit here?" Sai asked carefully. Ino looked up at him and shook her head. Taking a seat Sai finally saw the gravestone, Asuma Sarutobi. The dates showed that this was the one year anniversary of his death.

"Asuma sensei was our homeroom teacher in middle school. He was very active in the community, farmer's union, organized the middle school sports league, and he was a volunteer firefighter. Not only did he save two kids but he also found evidence that allowed police to catch the arson, he died of his wounds though."

Sai turned the page of his sketchbook and selected a different grade of pencil for the sketch. At first it was the lines in the stone and memorial text that his eyes focused on. The background, the trees, even the blades of grass catching tears... Sai lowered his notebook and looked at Ino, the tears flowing down her cheeks falling to the ground. The point of the final assignment finally became clear.

"Ino, I'm sorry." Closing his sketchbook Sai stood up and offered Ino his hand. Helping her to her feet they began walking out of the park. Ino seemed too distracted to notice Kurenai Sensei's arrival as she made her way back where they had come from.

"Sai," Ino began, "You said you were sorry. What do you have to be sorry for?"

"Yamato sensei told me that for my final project in art I need to do a series of portraits. As we were sitting there I thought to do one of you, but as I was drawing you were the last thing that caught my eye."

"Oh, really?" Ino sounded irritated. "That's one way to charm a girl." Though she sounded mad, a small smile finally parted her lips.

"I think my problem is being able to focus on people. I can draw anything under the sun, but I don't think I've figured out how to capture human emotion with my pencils and brushes. Until I do that, I'll never be great."

"I think you'd have to understand human emotion before you can even hope to draw it."

Sai stopped them both next to another gravesite. Looking down he saw the humble grave of his adoptive brother Shin. Wistful, yet happy memories, filled Sai's mind as he remembered his brother. Sai felt Ino's hand on his cheek after a moment, he hadn't realized that he had been crying.

"Come on, let me treat you to something." Ino asked as her voice resumed her usual cheerful tone. "It's the least I can do for smacking you in the head earlier."

"Ino," Sai paused as he realized the question was harder than it should have been to ask, "can I draw some portraits of you?"

"Hmm, only if they aren't nudes." She stuck out her tongue and laughed.

Sai found himself chuckling at her comment as well… only to realize that nude forms was another thing that he was in need of practicing. "Well, now that you mention…"

The jab in his ribs could have been described as anything but gentle, "Don't push your luck buster," was Ino's reply.


	9. Gai x Shizune

"And that's the last of them!" Gai shouted as the final decoration took its place on the wall. The student volunteers let loose an energetic shout, which was good considering they had all been working for the past three hours straight. Looking at his watch, Gai checked his mental timetable before speaking.

"Okay, the dinner is in two hours and the dance afterwards. Mitarashi Sensei is in the girl's locker room with Inuzuka Hana and will help you girls get ready. You young men, your things are waiting in the shower room by the northern fields. I'm proud of your hard work, now get ready so you can enjoy yourselves tonight."

After the last of them exited the room, Gai grabbed a broom and began sweeping the floor, which was littered with the remnants and leftover scraps of decoration. All sorts of paper designs hung from string suspended four meters up. Along the walls were traditional lanterns, which were overpowered by the normal electric lights, but when those were turned out gave the room a soft glow.

"But there's no mirror ball." A familiar voice called from one of the doorways.

"Ah Shizune," Gai turned to regard the Vice-Principal, who looked as though she had just come from the kitchens "we just finished setting up everything. How does it look?"

Shizune walked into the converted gym and raised her right hand to her chin, but paused. She looked at her hand, which was dirty, and wiped it on her apron. Her gaze went up to the stage, where the DJ was setting up the sound system off to the side as the live band's instruments took up the majority of the space. Her eyes then turned upward. Above the stage were five banners, each marked with the symbol of one of the major schools in the district.

"Each banner was made by students from its home school. There's a lot of youthful pride in those." Gai said smiling at all the hard work that had been put into each detail of the decorations.

"I am amazed that you were able to pull this all off in time Gai. The rest of the staff thinks you are a miracle worker."

'Miracle worker?' Gai thought to himself. It had only been two months ago that Principal Tsunade had told him to oversee an experimental, multi-campus, activities committee. The idea had grown out of a desire to have more interaction between schools outside of sports and other competitions. In those two months the committee had grown from eight members to seventy-four, with three sub-councils on culinary arts, cultural education, and a community outreach program.

"They say tonight is going to be a gamble, Shizune. No fewer than twenty people, some from each school, have told me that too many things can go wrong with having so many kids here tonight. But I have to say, I rather like that thought."

By the look on her face, Gai could clearly see that Shizune was puzzled by that statement.

"They say it's a gamble; that it will end in disaster. But I like to think that I'm betting on the kids. We made it our career to work with young people; so I say we should have a little more faith in them."

"You're right." Shizune said with a soft smile on her face.

'That smile really suits her.' Gai thought to himself.

"Oh great," Shizune's expression changed as she looked at her watch, "I've got to get those rolls out of the oven." She bowed slightly before running off towards the kitchens.

"Let me help you." Gai nearly yelled running after her.

* * *

Gai dropped into a seat as the last trays of food exited the kitchens. From his seat he saw the outdoor dining area with tables kept warm in the evening air by gas lamps. Standing next to him, Shizune offered him a towel that he used to wipe his brow.

"Thanks again." Gai said, feeling refreshed already.

Shizune took off her apron and set it on the counter. Sitting down in the chair across from him, Gai saw that she was clearly at the point of 'too exhausted to think about all the work still left to do'.

Gai shot up to his feet and took Shizune by her hands. Despite her minimal resistance, he pulled her to her feet. Grabbing a clean towel, Gai surprised Shizune by tying it around her eyes. Leading her blind, he escorted her back to the gym. On the stage Gai noticed that the band had finally arrived and was tuning their instruments for the dance later.

"Gai, what are we doing in the gym?" Shizune had guessed their destination, her voice clearly tired.

"You had expressed your disappointment that there was no mirror ball in the gym." Gai let go of Shizune's hand and walked over to the controls by the stage.

"Yeah, so what's this about?" Shizune's tone was showing signs of her curiosity, even through her fatigue.

Pressing the right button, Gai waited for just the right moment before telling Shizune, "Okay, take off your blindfold now."

Her eyes opened to descending light, hanging from pulleys on the ceiling that could be raised or lowered. A thousand white lights slowly fell from the darkness until she found herself surrounded by a sea of stars. She reached up with her hands trying to touch them, despite knowing they were too high to touch in the first place. She turned around to see the effect all across the gym, which had been transformed before her eyes into a magical ballroom. She giggled and spun in circles, her feet shedding their aches and cramps as she turned.

Gai nodded at the lead guitarist of the band before walking out onto the floor. The bassist started playing an old, familiar tune from years ago. Walking up to Shizune as the band leader began singing the slow song, Gai bowed and held out his hand.

"May I have this dance, my lady?"

After managing a curtsy, Shizune offered Gai her own hand and guided his right hand to her waist. Starting out slowly, they danced gently across the floor. Despite the slowness of their impromptu waltz, they found themselves really exploring the floor and moving quite freely.

"You know Gai," Shizune said quietly, despite the increased volume and tempo of the music, "for all your grand gestures, and often awkward encounters; you have a simple grace to you."

"I am a simple elemental man… the problem is that I am not always in my element."

Before Shizune could respond, Gai spun her around and pulled her close to him. Though a typical end to a dance, for some reason they both felt that it meant something more. Shizune felt Gai's breath through her hair and slowly pulled herself back. Only then did she realize that the band had stopped and the din of student voices was growing louder from outside.

"Thanks for the dance Gai." Taking a step backwards, Shizune breathed deeply feeling her exhaustion had fled away. She felt as though she could dance all night, but she knew it was time to get back to work.

Before she turned back towards the kitchens, she felt Gai's hand reach out and grab hers again. Pulling it towards his mouth, he gently kissed it before lowering it massaging it with his own hand as he did so.

"We shall have to continue this dance later." Gai flashed his winning smile before walking away. Before reaching the door, he jumped up and clicked his heels together.

As Shizune walked back to the kitchens, she could hear Gai's voice over the microphone talking to the students in the gym. From their cheers, she could tell that things were going very well. Through her dish glove she touched the back of her hand where Gai had kissed her. Taking the moment to muse that even though this night was planned for the kids, she felt that she was really the woman of the evening.


	10. Gaara x Matsuri

Flipping open his cell phone, Gaara casually checked the time. Even though he had already been looking at one of the digital clocks in the city square, he felt an odd compulsion to check the time against his own personal clock. Sure enough, his phone's time was two minutes behind the large clock on display in the avenue.

'Four-fifteen. Temari should be home by now.' Gaara thought to himself, an odd sense of apprehension always accompanied this time of day. Waiting to see what the condition back home was before completing his return from school.

As soon as he closed his cell phone he felt it vibrate in his hand. Opening it he found he had received a text message. Before he could check that message, he felt the phone shake in his hand again.

"Two messages?" Gaara sighed as he realized who the second one was from. His suspicion was confirmed as he saw his schoolmate Matsuri had sent him an address and a percentage, her weekly habit of informing Gaara of her employee's discount and her latest in a long line of places of employment. Closing the message Gaara found the second was from his sister, and the contents sent a shiver down his spine.

'Dad came home early. Kankuro at University. Don't come home.' Unconsciously Gaara rubbed his left ribs, remembering the last domestic dispute which had ended with his father cracking three of his older brother's ribs. Gaara breathed deeply to regain control of himself.

'Keep your cool Gaara. Just wait a few hours until the old man drinks himself asleep and then go home.'

It is a peculiar thing to be lost in thought yet somehow your feet always manage to find a direction to go. Dusk was setting on and despite the active bustle and traffic, Gaara couldn't help but feel alone. Taking a seat on a rail he sent a few texts to a friend who attended Konoha, but received no response.

"Gaara! I didn't think you'd show up." An oddly feminine voice called out.

Raising his head towards the street sign and opening his phone's recent messages, Gaara found that he had accidentally walked to where Matsuri said she was working. It was a small tea shop with a more traditional style.

It was barely past five and Gaara knew he needed to wait at least another hour. But he still debated whether he wanted to continue walking or not.

"Oh don't stand there like you're trying to decide whether to keep walking or come inside." Before he knew it, Matsuri had grabbed him by the arm and sat him down in a table by the window.

"Matsuri… I-" Gaara began, but was cut off when she placed a multi colored plate on the table.

"Keep your eye on the plate and tell me what you see?" Giving the plate a strong spin, Matsuri could barely keep still as she looked at Gaara. The patterns on the plate were distinct symbols when it was still, but as it spun everything blended together and new shapes seemed to form with each rapid revolution. Eventually one image stood from the random jumble.

"I see a man sitting on a park bench at dusk." Gaara admitted.

"A very reflective young man," a voice from behind the counter said, "brew him some Anji."

The street lights slowly came on as Gaara stared out the window. Car driving over a pothole in the street sent out low concussive sounds which shocked Gaara as the unwelcome memory of the fight between his father and older brother. The screams of his older sister still in his ears "Gaara!"

"Gaara?" Matsuri's voice called him back from his reflection. "You're really out of it today, aren't you?"

"Just thinking Matsuri." Looking around, Gaara could see the store was mainly full of older customers preferring to wind down their day relaxing with tea rather than partying in a different sort of bar. It was a quiet atmosphere that Matsuri really didn't seem to fit in with. "Why do you keep inviting me to drop by where you work?"

With a sigh, Matsuri waved to her boss and sat down in the seat across from Gaara. "It doesn't make me seem too pushy does it?"

"Not really."

"Good. It's because I'm curious. You are a mystery to the entire school. Everyone knows you're the top student, son of an Assemblyman, and you have an older brother in the nation's top college."

"Well I have to keep up my schoolwork."

"And yet you wander the city streets until nine o'clock some nights. We can guess from your eyes that you stay up all night on your schoolwork, but…"

"My father is a hard man to deal with. He deals with a lot of stress. Though he's just a member of the Assembly I've seen the paperwork he has to deal with; having to pick up the slack both the mayor and chief of police leave him."

"I bet it's hard on you and your siblings too."

"Yeah, my older brother Kankuro has it the worst." Gaara said taking a long drink from his tea. "He gave up his dream of studying abroad to please father and went to his Alma Mater. The worst part is that even though Kankuro is the oldest, I think father wants me to follow his footsteps."

"But what do you want?"

Gaara couldn't bring himself to say the words, 'To not be afraid of my father.' Instead he took another slow drink of his drink.

"Dreams are never easy Gaara. Sometimes in order to reach them, we have to face our nightmares first." Turning back, Matsuri noticed her break was nearly up. "You'll do well Gaara. I believe in you." She placed her hand on his as she got up to leave.

Setting down his mug, Gaara left his payment on the table and walked out. 'Face my nightmares you say? For an insomniac like me, there's nothing but waking nightmares.'

Opening the door to the house and taking off his shoes, Gaara was greeted by his sister Temari. She whispered,

"You came home too fast. Kankuro isn't here yet, and he's in a bad mood today."

"No Temari, I've put this off too long. Whatever happens, don't interfere."

The stairway to father's den was an ascent into darkness. Faint yelling and the sounds of several old touchtone phones being picked up, dialed, and slammed down. Smoke billowed in the air. Cigars. If you're going to face the dragon in his lair, you're going to have to breathe the same air as him. As Gaara reached the door all sounds ceased, and the old man was sitting in his chair facing the door.

"Close the door boy. You want to say something?"

"I'm not going to take the exams for Keio University."

"Yes you are, this conversation is now over. Now go downstairs boy."

"All my life you've called me boy." Of all the muscles in his body, Gaara thought it odd that only the ones around his eyes tensed. "Yet you once told me that real men stand up for themselves."

"Quite right." Faster than Gaara could blink, his father was across the room and planted a powerful right fist into Gaara's gut. Doubling over from the pain, Gaara forced himself to stand upright. Taking a step back, his father turned around and faced the window. "And what school are you planning to go to?"

"Osaka, mother's school." Gaara suppressed a cough.

"I won't support you if you go there."

"I can manage on my own."

"Very well." Sitting back down in his chair, the old man picked up a receiver and began dialing a number. "Anything else you want to say."

"No."

"Good night then… son."

Going straight to his room, Gaara was surprised to find a cold pack waiting on his bed. Lying down, he put it on his aching abdomen and opened his cell phone. Two messages, both from Matsuri.

'Good luck' and 'Thanks for the tip.'

Once again Gaara found his face had adopted a most peculiar muscular change, he was smiling.


	11. Nagato x Konan

Red sign flashed, burly men passed by their work clothes smeared with tar and the dust of a day not yet over. The car horn did nothing to hasten the scene, but it eased Konan's tension. Stop sign lowered may as well have been the opening signal to the grand prix. No sooner did the engine get up to speed then the brakes had to be applied to stop at the red light. With a grunt, she tightened her grip on the wheel and down-shifted the engine. Reaching over she tapped the clock on the dashboard."Stop worrying about the time Konan. My meeting with Principal Tsunade isn't for another twenty minutes and Konoha is already in sight. Being stopped at a red light isn't going to be a problem." Nagato already had his briefcase in his lap, as though ready to get out of the car that instant. His words did little to ease her concerns as the road construction and traffic of students departing from school would easily use up those twenty minutes. Sure enough, by the time they finally parked they were a good five minutes late."Nagato, you have to remember to address the concerns of the alumni association. They're in the light blue folder behind the zoning forms…" The glare in Nagato's eye bordered on frustration, but eased into understanding. With a nod, he motioned for her to follow him halls of Konoha Gakuen were full of mixed feelings. Konan was never sure whether she admired or hated the campus; for despite its fine academic programs, too many ruling from the School Board had favored it when other schools were in the right. Though she tried not to be bitter about it, a couple of recent cases had made things even harder for Ame Gakuen to continue operations."Konan, I'm going to need you focused today." Nagato said as he stopped before the Principal's office. "I know you do not appreciate Principal Tsunade's positions-""Her positions are one matter. It's the way she manipulates others to get what she wants.""Now Konan, is 'manipulate' really the right word?""How else would you explain the budget meeting last quarter? She argued for a twenty percent budget increase at this school."Nagato quietly coughed out a laugh and smiled thinly. "And you were the one telling me not to get off topic today."The meeting went by smoothly, Tsunade was as forceful as ever but Nagato was in top form. Ame was one-tenth the size of Konoha, but it was the top High School in the Tri-District area. Recruiting top students was always a priority, but other schools longed for such students to bolster their student body as well. The mere threat that Ame would pursue such students often put the Principals Nagato visited on defense, and open to suggestions that were the real goal of the proved to be not quite so easy to trick, for she knew what it was that Ame needed as well. "So, you promise not to pursue the Sarutobi and Hyuuga families for your school and in return you want me to give you my word that I will speak to our sponsors to include you.""There are so many things I think which can bind our schools together. It is our students and faculties that hold our campuses together, funding is merely window-dressing. I'm sure you agree.""Of course." Tsunade leaned forward in her chair making a crisp sound as her dress-suit shifted position. "So what is it you really want?""Something the Alumni Association suggested a while back. Ame is a top school, but we don't have the same exposure that Konoha does; we don't attract the attention of the same 'circles' as it were.""Nearly seventy percent of your students become CEOs or high-level administrators. What do you expect? Konoha has some solid programs, but we are still primarily a local school."Konan's wristwatch beeped and she put her hand over it to suppress the sound. Whether it was psychosomatic or not, Nagato pulled out a handkerchief and coughed into it. Opening her handbag Konan realized that she had forgotten the medication in the car. "Please excuse me," she said as she got up to leave, "continue the meeting."The walk to the car may was done in quiet shame. Konan had always done her best to remember Nagato's condition and have his medications on hand. She felt like punching the walls of the school, an empty feeling for they had not been the true cause of her were still leaving when she reached the parking lot. The uniforms had changed over the years, but the colors were still the same. That dark green stained red in a back alley, frantic yells, and hands too slippery to hold a wound medicine was in a small case that Konan found easily enough. Nagato nodded when she came back. Tsunade was signing her name to the forms and an air of tension seemed to lift from the room. "We'll need to polish out more details on this exchange program, but I see some good potential here." Tsunade stood and formal goodbyes were made once Nagato had taken his prescription. Konan was beginning to get bored with the walk from the office to the parking lot."I know you don't like coming here Konan," Nagato said as they sat back down in the car. "But that was years ago, we were living a different life then.""Yeah." Konan didn't argue when Nagato took the keys from her and drove them back to the other side of town. Her thoughts were lost in a violent, reckless past. One she had left behind but could never be removed from. As the sky began to darken her attention came back and she realized they had stopped. "Why did we stop?""I have an errand I need to run. And I need you to help me." Helping her from her seat, they walked to the store."A pet store?""I was thinking about the past a lot Konan. About ourselves, our old gang…""Yahiko?" Konan whispered breathlessly."We've spent a long time trying to make our dreams come true Konan. But there is one thing that is missing.""And you think a pet is going to fix it?"That odd all-knowing smile crossed Nagato's face as he said, "Just come inside." They were shown into a room that looked like a cross between a hospital and a kennel in the back. Several small enclosures each held a mother with a new litter of puppies. Nagato asked questions about breed, health, and growth rates to the owner as they were shown one family after was a small litter of four puppies that caught Konan's attention. An assistant was holding a small brown dog that was sleeping quietly in her hands. In spite of herself she felt the need to ask if she could hold it. It was small, but warm. It moved in her arms as it breathed and squirmed. Its skin was ugly and wrinkled now, yet by the look of the mother it would grow to be a fine didn't say a word as she asked about when the dogs would be ready to leave their mother, or for taking home, or any of the dozens of follow-up questions. As it turned out, all of these dogs had one thing in common; their mothers had been captured by animal rescue while pregnant. In any other case they would have grown up on the streets, wild and homeless."I think we're getting that one." Nagato whispered to the owner. Konan stroked the back of the small puppy. It was delightfully… chibi.


	12. After a thousand nights Chouji x Ino

Opening his third bag of chips, Chouji continued to pace the dressing room with Shikamaru lying on his back in the corner. Kiba was styling his hair in the mirror while biting onto his fang-guitar pick in his teeth. Naruto spun his drum sticks back and forth in his hands, pretending that nobody saw him when he didn't catch them just right.

"It's no good guys; I'm a nervous wreck right now."

"Arf ghou gavin dis…" Kiba took the pick out of his mouth, "Are you seriously having another panic attack?"

A knock on the door was the ten minute signal before their set was scheduled. The District Talent Show was the big ending to the School Festival and the start of summer break. As many hours as they had put into practice, he still got chills at the thought of performing.

"Chouji, come with me." Shikamaru jumped up, grabbed the chips from Chouji's hands and threw them away in the trash. Moving towards the stage only heightened the tension in his muscles and the rush of sweat coming down the sides of his face. Walking past the stage crew, he pointed out to the stage from the side where the girls were waiting to start their dance routine after the first band finished.

Turning his head away from the crowd, Chouji looked across at the girls: Sakura, Hinata, Tenten, and Ino. It was interesting seeing emotions in others that were troubling his own heart, that mix of excitement and worry and panic.

His heart skipped a beat when they went out to dance, knowing that their turn was next. Naruto and Kiba were already behind the curtain reading their instruments. Kiba and Naruto looked like they were out of an 80s hair metal band, but it suited them. Chouji's own black velvet suit did not seem to match; he thought the stylist was going out of her way to make him look like Meatloaf.

The girls were all impressive; they had fit their styles together in an energetic mix of choreography. Sakura's cheer squad experience fit Hinata's ballet by helping her achieve insane height with her spin jumps. And Ino's break dancing meshed flawlessly with Tenten's martial arts, like an impromptu Caopeira. Though it all he noticed their eyes, they were lost in what they were doing, each one looking at something. In a flash his eyes met Ino's, and the realization that she was looking towards his side of the stage made everything else in the world seem to fall away.

It was the eyes that made him think. Here eyes were so clear, so distinct. Looking out on the crowd, their faces seemed to fade in the darkness, their eyes stood out, but only reflecting the lights from the stage. The audience had become a living sea of stars. Spinning the microphone in his hand, he smiled. "Now that's a crowd I can perform to."

The girls rushed off stage, but before he walked on he caught Ino by her hand and pulled her close to say, "Be sure to keep your eyes on me." Walking onto the stage, he plugged in his mic and got behind the keyboard as the curtain pulled back revealing the band. Shikamaru on the second mic and acoustic guitar gave him a smile and a nod before looking out to a specific part of the crowd. His heart was beating fast, but he realized all those eyes looking at him didn't matter, only one pair of eyes mattered and that was who he was going to perform for.


End file.
